Park Overview

Pilot Mountain – known as the “gem of the Piedmont” – was once surrounded by back country and Old American Indian trading paths with wagon roads leading into the Yadkin Valley.

Today, Pilot Mountain State Park, located just 20 miles northwest of Winston-Salem, offers access to the banks of the Yadkin River, over 20 miles of hiking trails, and multiple vantage points of the park’s main attraction – Pilot Mountain.

Pilot Mountain is considered a “monadnock,” an Indian word for “lone mountain,” or “mountain away from mountains.” Views of this iconic isolated mountain can be seen along the Mountain section trails, including the Pilot Knob Trail, Little Pinnacle Trail, Sassafras/Track Trail, and other smaller lookout areas.

Our Adventure - Pilot Knob Trail

From the Summit Parking Area in the Mountain section, visitors can access numerous trailheads, including the Pilot Knob Trail; Ledge Spring Trail; Grindstone Trail; Sassafras/Track Trail; and Little Pinnacle Overlook, one of the best viewing areas in the park. There is also an observation deck for getting an expansive bird’s eye view of the Yadkin River Valley and Stony Ridge.

The Pilot Knob Trail runs the perimeter of the base of the Big Pinnacle for a round trip of 0.8 miles. We circle around the infamous Pilot Knob, which has been a navigational landmark for centuries. The rugged terrain is strenuous with multiple rock stairs and narrow rocky paths that skirt along the cliff’s edges.

Since the 1970s, rare native plant species are highly protected and climbing the pinnacle is prohibited.

Views from the base of the summit peer down on the pine oak forest and farming towns below. Overhead, ravens, turkey vultures, and hawks may be spotted along the hike, especially while in their migratory fall patterns when they use the updraft at Pilot Mountain for a boost in the wind.

We follow the red square blazes, crossing the gap to Big Pinnacle along rocky, sandy terrain and mossy staircases surrounded by precipitous rock wall formations and crevices. We encounter ferns, rhododendron, Greenland sandwort, Table Mountain pine and pitch pine, and bear oak and blackjack oak.

If rock climbing is on your agenda, you may connect to the 1-mile Ledge Springs Trail, which offers climbing access for experienced rappelers along the Little Pinnacle of Pilot Mountain.

Pilot Mountain State Park’s Mountain and River sections offer over 3,700 acres of preserved wilderness to explore!

PILOT MOUNTAIN STATE PARK Trail System

Mountain Section:

• Pilot Knob Trail – 0.8 miles (moderate)

• Little Pinnacle Overlook – 0.1 mile (easy)

• Sassafras/Track Trail – 0.15 miles (moderate)

• Pilot Creek Trail – 3.3 miles (moderate)

• Fiddlehead Trail – 0.4 miles (easy)

• Grassy Ridge Trail – 1.5 miles (moderate)

• Grindstone Trail – 3.5 miles (strenuous)

• Ledge Springs Trail – 1 mile (strenuous) – rock climbing access

• Mountain Trail – 4.3 miles (strenuous)

• Corridor Trail – 6.6 miles (strenuous) – hiking & equestrian

• Mountains-to-Sea State Trail – 12.6-mile segment through the park (strenuous)

River Section:

• Bean Shoals Canal – 0.5 miles (easy)

• Horne Creek Trail – 2.5 miles (moderate)

• Ivy Bluff Trail – 1.3 miles (moderate)

• Yadkin Islands Trail – 1.5 miles (moderate) – hiking & equestrian

• Corridor Trail – 6.6 miles (strenuous) – hiking & equestrian

• Yadkin River Paddle Trail – 130 miles

Things to Do

• Hiking – 20+ miles

• Horseback Riding – 9 miles

• Rock Climbing

• Visitor Center with educational exhibits & gift shop

• Picnicking

• Mountain section – Tent & RV camping – no W/E hookups (42 sites)

• River section – Paddle-In camping (38 sites)

• Fishing at River section

• Horne Creek Living Historical Farm

• Town of Mount Airy (Mayberry) – hometown of Andy Griffith

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